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Dave Griffin On Running
The Carroll County Times – Sunday, September 27, 2009
I started running in 1976 at a time when the American running boom was surging. Back then, Americans were competing with the best in the world, and I remember watching Frank Shorter enter the Olympic stadium in Montreal to win the silver medal. That was mildly disappointing, after he had won the gold four years earlier in Munich.
Shorter was followed by a string of great American distance runners. Bill Rogers, who had won the Boston marathon for the first time in 1975, joined Shorter on the 1976 Olympic team, and went on to win Boston three more times in 1978, ‘79 and ‘80. Then, there was Alberto Salazar, who would dominate the marathon distance, winning New York for three consecutive years from 1980 through 1982.
Among all the great distance runners of that time, I remember admiring Craig Virgin the most. In 1980, Virgin was the first, and still only, American to win the world cross-country title. He would do it again in 1981, the same year he finished second at Boston.
There was something else about Virgin, and I remembered it recently when I found an old video of him the internet. In the film, he was pulling away to win the 1981 Peachtree 10K in an American record time. As I watched it, it reminded me of – me.
Virgin and I looked alike. My own father once saw a picture of him in Runner Times magazine, and thought he was looking at a picture of his own son. There was something inspiring about that. I guess I figured if I looked like him, maybe I could run like him too.
I spent many years trying. In the years that Virgin was winning races like Peachtree, I was beginning a string of local road racing wins. With each victory, my goals would elevate, and before long I was thinking I had a shot to run an Olympic Trials qualifying time.
It was a stretch, to say the least, but I was getting better every year and that goal kept me pressing forward.
It was a stress fracture that ended the string of successes. After that, life’s changes pulled me away from running and my focus was gone.
It was too difficult to dwell on giving up. From late childhood through my twenties, I wanted to be the next Craig Virgin, or at least the next closest thing.
What took me years to realize is this; that’s not really what I wanted. I mean, I’ve never even met him. And, while I’m sure he’s a great guy, all I really know is that he ran fast. Still, all those years of wanting to be like him helped me do something pretty valuable. It helped me become me.
We all need role models. They inspire us. They give us direction, but it’s important to follow them only until we discover our own way. Once we do that, we can lead instead of follow, and if we’re lucky, become a role model ourselves.
Dave Griffin
Dave Griffin is the Times’ running writer. His column appears every other Sunday. Reach him at dpgflyingfeet@aol.com or join the Facebook group, Dave Griffin On Running.